UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!

INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014

PAGE 1
TABLE OF
CONTENTS
THANK YOUS
Page 2
CLASSES & PROJECTS
Page 3
STUDENT SPOTLIGHTS
Page 5
A FEW GOOD PHOTOS
Page 8
CULTURE STORIES
Page 10
QUESTION & ANSWER
Page 13
EXPERIENCE STORIES
Page 14
THE HEAT
S T U D E N T N E WS L E T T E R
THANK YOU, UAEM & ECIT COORDINATORS!
By Lisa Jeon
It has been an exciting but
busy three weeks of classes,
evening activities, and o#!campus
cultural excursions for all of the
ACCP participants and sta#!
Throughout it all, the UAEM and
ECIT coordinators have
impressed me with their ability to
coordinate their university groups
and to serve as liaisons between
the program sta# and the
students. I would like to take this
opportunity to thank Luisa, Luis,
Juan & Hua for their hard work,
dedication, and their friendship.
This program could not have
been a success without you!
ABOUT THE PROGRAM
The American Culture & Communication Program $ACCP% is a multi!level ESL
program that provides summer learning opportunities through language and culture
immersion. This program design promotes uency through social interaction and
engagement with the community of UNT, Denton, and DFW. Our goal is to give
students a unique opportunity to increase English uency through cultural
immersion, social interaction, and hands!on learning.
2014 UAEM & ECIT Coordinators
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 2
Professors
Dr. Astley Ancona $Health%, Dr. Chandan
Acharya $Management%, Dr. Mark Demarest
$Biology%, Dr. David Keathly $Computer
Sciences%, Dr. Charlene Dadzie $Marketing%,
Dr. Kathryn McCauley $Business Law%, Dr.
Jason Powell $Computer Sciences%, Dr. Jorge
Reyes Silveyra $Computer Sciences%, Dr. Haj
Ross $Linguistics%, Dr. Chiachih Wang
$Psychology%, & Dr. Wendy Watson $Political
Science%
Colleges & Departments
Chinese Student Association, College of Arts &
Science, College of Business, Discovery Park,
Eagle Images, Pohl Recreation Center, UNT!
International, UNT Bookstore, UNT Career
Center, UNT Media Library, UNT
Multicultural Center, UNT Sky Theater
Planetarium & UNT Sustainability
People
Stephanie Azubuike $UNT Career Center%,
Carolyn Blevins $UNT Housing & Dining
Director%, Dr. Warren Burggren $UNT Provost
and VP of Academic A#airs%, Marc Cobos
$Paper Concepts%, Grace Cowan $IELI Student
Services Coordinator%, Fernando Fleurquin
$IELI Director%, Dickie Hargrave $UNT!
International Assistant Director of
International Recruitment%, Chris Lawrence
$Associate Director of Facility Operations%,
Arthur Lumzy, Jr. $UNT Career Center%, Julie
Moore $UNT!International Administrative
Specialist%, Dr. Richard Nader $UNT Vice
Provost for International A#airs%, Randall
Peters $UNT Planetarium Manager%, Adam
Silva $Student Accounting & Cashiering
Services Supervisor%, James Strawn $CAS IT
Services Student Computing Manager%, Pieter
Vermeulen $UNT!International Recruitment &
Engagement Director%, Tasha Wells $College of
Business Director of Events%, & Pam Yarbrough
$UNT!International Director of Finances%
Volunteers
Jacob Bloch, Christal Brewster, Anna Brown,
Kendall Fleming, Joy Huang, Julie Morris, Tariq
Safrah, & Holly Shelton
UNT Liaisons & University Coordinators
Ma del Pilar Ampudia $UAEM!UNT Academic
Liaison Director%, Manuel Goel $UNT!UAEM
Academic Liaison Director%, Maria Luisa
Becerril Lopez $UAEM Coordinator%, Jose Luis
Martinez Vilchis $UAEM Coordinator%, Chen
Juan $ECIT Coordinator%, & Li Hua $ECIT
Coordinator%
2014 Sta#
Program Director & Advanced Class
Instructor
Lisa Jeon
Intermediate Class Instructor
Elizabeth Wallett
Beginner Class Instructor
Chip Cullum
Introduction Class Instructor
Caroline Stasa
US Culture & Oral Communication
Workshop Instructors
Chip Cullum, Paige Laycock,
Brandon Mila, April Powers &
Caroline Stasa
Program Assistant & Performing Arts
Workshop Instructor
Paige Laycock
English Through Film
Workshop Instructor
Chip Cullum
Presentation Skills
Workshop Instructor
Elizabeth Wallett
Professional Development
Workshop Instructor
Brandon Mila
UNT Scholar Workshop Instructor
Caroline Stasa
Teaching Assistants
Anna Brown, $Brian% Alex Elliott,
Tyler Macho, & Dina Madi
Activity Coordinators
$Brian% Alex Elliott, Cassandra Felix,
Tyler Macho, Dina Madi, Zak
Shelton, & Elizabeth Wallett
Chaperones
Michael Kim, Samantha Mauney &
Caroline Stasa
Photographer/Videographer
Samantha Mauney
THANKS!
2014 ACCP Sta#
Visit our website, $UNTISummerInstitute.com%, like our Facebook page, or get
connected through our blog $UNTISummerInstitute.blogspot.com%.
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 3
MORNING CLASSES AND AFTERNOON WORKSHOPS
As our students can attest, the UNT!International Summer Institute
is a truly unique English language program! Unlike many traditional ESL
programs that focus on rote methods, this program is designed to teach
language through cultural immersion, social interaction, and experiential
learning.
As part of the 2014 ACCP, participants engaged in four hours of English
study daily. Morning class lessons focused on core English skills $including
speaking and pronunciation, reading, listening, and writing and grammar%
while also incorporating cultural, linguistic, and social immersion.
A portion of the four hours of study also included hands!on, themed
workshops. Students attended one required workshop $US Culture &
Communication% and one elective workshop based on a specic skill
$Presentation Skills, Performing Arts, English Through Film, Professional
Development, & UNT Scholar%.
LANGUAGE, CULTURE IMMERSION
2014 ACCP WORKSHOP CLASSES
PRESENTATION SKILLS
Practice and improve oral English by
developing practical and academic English
presentation skills.
PERFORMING ARTS
Practice speaking English and get
condence through short drama skits and
improvisation.
ENGLISH THROUGH FILM
Practice English while improving listening,
learning about culture, and discussing
American TV shows and movies.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Develop professional skills using English
such as resume writing, interviewing, job
searching, and creating e-portfolios.
UNT SCHOLAR
Learn all about UNT while practicing oral
communication skills in English during
campus tours and eld trips.
US CULTURE &
ORAL COMMUNICATION
Learn about topics in US and Texas culture
and practice oral communication skills in
English by doing on-campus interviews and
recording experiences in the United States.
Advanced Class
Intermediate Class
Beginner Class
Introduction Class
Advanced class students play Introduction Jenga on the rst day of class.
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 4
STUDENT!CREATED PROJECTS FROM CLASSES
In the morning and afternoon workshop classes, students created
individual and group projects on a variety of di#erent topics.
The Introduction class wrote and illustrated a collection of original
childrens stories. The Beginner class created short lms about aspects of
Texas and American culture. The Intermediate class created group
presentations about American slang and idioms. Additionally, the
Advanced class wrote and peer!edited academic English articles about
their impressions of US and Texas culture, their program experience, and
how the ACCP has helped them learn more about their area of study.
Final projects in the afternoon workshop classes also included student!
created culture blogs and posters, travel brochures about US regions,
commercials, movie reviews, and e!portfolios.
You can check out all of these fantastic class projects via the links below
or on the program Facebook page!
CLASS PROJECTS
CLASS PROJECT LINKS
Introduction Class
Collection of original childrens stories: http://www.scribd.com/doc/
235041131/Original-Childrens-Stories
Beginner Class
Videos about cultural topics viewable on our Facebook page!
Intermediate Class
Presentations about English slang: http://www.scribd.com/doc/
235041355/Presentations-about-English-Slang
Advanced Class
Academic English articles: see pages 10-24!
US Culture & Oral Communication Workshops
Culture blogs:
http://accpsummer2014.wordpress.com/
http://chinameetstexas.blogspot.com/?view=sidebar
Travel brochures about US regions: http://www.scribd.com/doc/
235040930/US-Region-Travel-Brochures
US culture collages: viewable on our Facebook page!
Performing Arts, English Through Film, Professional
Development & UNT Scholar Workshops
Student-created commercials, small group movie reviews, professional
e-portfolios, and posters about American culture viewable on
our Facebook page!
Original childrens stories
US culture collage
Presentation about English slang
Come to Texas commercial
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 5
What was your favorite
class during the program
and why?
The Advanced class
because we played a lot
of games and it was
really great to have
conversations with
students that dont
speak Spanish.
Advice for others who
want to learn English as a
second language?
Practice is denitely
important because it
doesnt matter if you go
to class if you dont
continue practicing!
Has your English
improved as a result of
this program?
Actually my English
has improved because I
lost the embarrassment
to speak to another
person and my
vocabulary improved.
Im also better at
asking questions in the
right word order.
Why did you decide to
participate in this
program?
I wanted to improve
my English and I
wanted to study in the
United States.
STUDENT SPOTLIGHTS
Gabriela
Chemical
Engineering
UAEM
What was your favorite
cultural excursion during
the program?
I think the Bowling &
Arcade Night and the
baseball game. I also
liked going to see the
cowboys in Fort
Worth. That was
fantastic.
Why did you decide to
participate in this
program?
I wanted to experience
American culture and
wanted to know about
American and what
Americans are all
about. Its a really good
experience.
What was your favorite
evening activity during
the program and why?
Minute to Win It
Night because it was
very great! We did a lot
of games and cooperate
with our friends to take
part in all kinds of
activities. Finally, we
became the champions!
Advice for others who
want to learn English as a
second language?
I think the most
important thing you
should do is to talk
with other people and
communicate with
people of other
cultures instead of just
your group.
Qin (Anderson)
Software
Engineering
ECIT
What was your favorite
class during the program
and why?
Advanced class because
it is very di#erent than
classes in China. The
class has many forms
and groups and we can
talk to others about
di#erent opinions and
ideas.
Has your English
improved as a result of
this program?
I think my English has
improved because you
have to speak English
everyday here. Being
with my classmates
forces me to learn
English.
Why did you decide to
participate in this
program?
First, its nice to visit a
totally di#erent
country that is the
biggest in the world.
Second, I am a major in
English so its a good
chance to improve my
skills.
What was your favorite
class activity?
Games that were not
just for fun but also for
learning. When we
were taught a new
language point, the
teacher would ask us to
practice and remember
it. The most impressive
was Mr. Bean!
Baolian (Bessie)
English
ECIT
Has your English
improved as a result of
this program?
My vocabulary has
improved because I
have learned so many
words I didnt know
before.
What was your favorite
cultural excursion?
Texas Rangers baseball
game because I had
never been to a
baseball game. The
stadium is so big, you
can eat snacks, and its
fun.
Advice for others who
want to learn English as a
second language?
First, they have to like
the language because if
you dont like it its
harder to learn it.
Second you have to
work hard to study.
What was your favorite
evening activity during
the program and why?
Minute to Win It
Night because I liked
the competition. Ive
also watched similar
shows so to actually do
it and not just watch it
was great.
Shaid
Political Sciences
& Public
Management
UAEM
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 6
What was your favorite
on!campus activity?
Minute to Win It
Night because it was so
funny. I was involved in
Hut Hut Hike and
Rapid Fire!
Advice for others who
want to learn English as a
second language?
Practice because if you
dont practice you will
not learn English.

What is your favorite
cultural excursion?
The Stockyards
because I didnt know
the rodeo before and
so it was my rst time.
It was very fun with
delicious food. And the
place was beautiful.
Has your English
improved as a result of
this program?
Yes. In the specic area
of listening.
Ivan
Social
Anthropology
UAEM
What did you learn about
American culture?
The most surprising I
think is Texas cowboy
culture and the
American baseball
game. It was very
exciting because I love
sports. I know baseball
in the US is very
popular.
What was your favorite
class during the program?
I think my favorite
class is the workshop
class because we can
learn more about
American slang,
idioms, and culture.

Has your English
improved as a result of
this program?
I wanted to go out of
China to see what the
world is. I also heard
from students who
came here last year
who said its a good
chance to improve our
English.
What was your favorite
cultural experience?
The most
unforgettable activity
was the baseball game.
Gao (Roger)
Circuits & Systems
ECIT
What was your favorite
cultural experience?
Shopping at
NorthPark. Its my
favorite!
Has your English
improved as a result of
this program?
I think my English is
better in
pronunciation. We can
talk English
everywhere so its a
good chance to
improve.
What was your favorite
class during the program?
Intermediate class
because I can talk and
express myself. I can
learn and speak and
not feel scared. Its
important because in
my major I may speak
in front of people.
Advice for others who
want to learn English as a
second language?
To know some foreign
people from other
countries and make
friends with them. In
three weeks of study
we have learned by
speaking English.
Sandra
Chemical
Engineering
UAEM
What did you learn about
American culture?
The diversity in Dallas
and Denton was
surprising because you
could see people from
all over the world.
Has your English
improved as a result of
this program?
Yes I think maybe my
pronunciation because
of course you get to
learn a lot of things
when youre home but
its not the same to
speak an hour a day
versus all the day
speaking English. My
uency is better.
Why did you decide to
participate in this
program?
I thought being here in
a university would be
pretty amazing. The
people you meet are
unique because you get
to meet students that
are studying business
and arts. You get to
know a lot of
personalities.
What was your favorite
evening activity?
Movie Night because it
was a totally di#erent
experience watching a
movie with Chinese
people. They got really
excited during the
movie. The movie was
good but the moment
with all of the people
was better.
Mariela
Instituto Mxico
de Toluca
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 7
What was your favorite
cultural experience?
Bowling & Arcade
Night because it was so
fun!
Has your English
improved as a result of
this program?
Yes. My speaking and
listening because we
can chat with others
who speak English.
Why did you decide to
participate in this
program?
I think its a chance to
improve my English
and I can see the USA.
What is your favorite
class during the program?
Performing Arts
because I can act and I
have never acted
before in an English
class.
Haiwei (Kitty)
Chinese Language
ECIT
What was your favorite
cultural excursion?
The Stockyards visit
because in Mexico I
have never been to a
rodeo. So this was
exciting!
Advice for others who
want to learn English as a
second language?
Maybe they need to
come with a positive
attitude and believe
they can do it easily.
Its fun to learn English
here.
Why did you decide to
participate in this
program?
Because I wanted to
know more about the
English language and
because my friends
have told me its a
really nice place to
visit.
What was your favorite
class during the program?
Performing Arts
because I like
expressing myself
through acting because
I am a shy person.
Karol
Languages
UAEM
What was your favorite
class during the program?
Presentation Skills
because I think this
class can access our
skills and our teacher is
very good.
Why did you decide to
participate in this
program?
Because UNT is our
sister school and our
school invited us to
attend this program.
This is why I came to
UNT.
What was your favorite
cultural experience?
The Grapevine Mills
shopping trip. It was
very fantastic!
What was your favorite
evening activity?
Sports Night because i
like swimming,
basketball, and
volleyball. It was so
cool! Our group leaders
led us to play some
sports.
Guodong (Josh)
Circuits & Systems
ECIT
What did you learn about
American culture?
I thought the people
here were not kind but
its the opposite.
People are so kind and
I was surprised by that.
For example, at the
Stockyards, I talked to
a man who taught me
about Fort Worth.
What was your favorite
class during the program?
UNT Scholar because
we listened to the
professor who told us
about the history of
cowboys. We also went
to a co#ee shop and
discussed his speech. It
made us get a better
understanding.
What was your favorite
thing about UNT?
I love the equipment
and the facility, e.g.,
Rec Center, Apogee
Stadium, cafeteria, and
computer labs. I also
like the atmosphere
here.
Has your English
improved as a result of the
program?
Of course, especially
listening. In China, I
took part in an English
First class taught by
English!speaking
teachers once a week.
But here you must
speak in English
everyday.
Bowen
Shanghai Foreign
Language High
School
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 8
A FEW GOOD PHOTOS...
Melecio and Norberto at Bowling & Arcade Night. Tour of the Denton Square.
UAEM students pointing to Fort Worths sister city, Toluca. Daniel winning the Pink Elephant Minute to Win It game.
ACCP students attend a linguistics circle led by Dr. Haj Ross. Campus Scavenger Hunt prize winners!
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 9
Introduction class students tour Apogee Stadium. Students organize a surprise birthday party for Bessie.
ECIT students with the University of North Texas sign. Ready to sing English songs at Karaoke Night!
Allen & Serena at the Texas Rangers baseball game. Fort Worth Stockyards Championship Rodeo.
Visit our website, $UNTISummerInstitute.com%, like our Facebook page, or get
connected through our blog $UNTISummerInstitute.blogspot.com%.
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 10
CROSS!CULTURAL SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES
By Leung Po Ting
Hong Kong consists of Hong Kong Island, Kowloon,
the New Territories, and several other smaller islands
spread over 1,092 square kilometers. In this small piece of
land, you can nd East meets west culture, some of the
cultures are similar to America. Interesting, you may nd
it confusing that some cultures have been localized in
Hong Kong. In this article, I will share the similarities and
di#erences between Hong Kong and America.
Hong Kong people value freedom the most. As an
international city, you can easily nd a shared value. In
America, it is easy to nd All you can eat, All you can
play, America provides high degree of freedom to
citizens, and they have a right to choose. Freedom is also a
core value for Hong Kong people. They are always proud
and treasure their freedom of speech and press.
Secondly, Hong Kong and America emphasize
e&ciency, just like nding fast food in Hong Kong and
America is easy. As they value time and agree that time is
money, they can grab a quick meal and then continue
their work. Furthermore, they also value e#ectiveness,
they believe in work hard, play hard.
Thirdly, Hong Kong and America have a hot weather
in August. They usually turn on the air!conditioner and
lower down the temperature in order to comfort
themselves. On the other hand, Hong Kong people and
American love driving their private car. It is common to
see in Hong Kong and America a high quality of life.
On the other hand, workplaces in Hong Kong focus
on teamwork than individual achievement, so they work as
a team which is di#erent from America culture. Moreover,
there is no discrimination against women in America as
they respect equal opportunities among gender.
Lastly, American has di#erent lifestyles. When you
talk about lifestyle among Hong Kong, you may nd that
their life is fast!moving and ever!changing. It is true that
Hong Kong people work very quickly, no matter student
or labor. Di#erently, American practices slower lifestyle.
They enjoy the process rather than the result.
To conclude, Hong Kong and America share some
value, but at the same time, they also have their own
culture. No matter what culture we have, I believe we
should accept each other culture and learn from each
other.
CULTURE STORIES
Visit to the Da"as Museum of Art.
By Yelotzin Cortes Morales
Diversity is a human condition.
We are born and grow up with it and
learn from it. The term Culture was
dened as the acquired knowledge
which people use to interpret
experiences and generate behavior. As
well, I understand culturalism as a
kind of social movement, in which
participates the identity of each
member, to be recognized as a society.
When I rst met the Chinese
students and the American teachers
and guys from the sta#, I only could
see many cultures, backgrounds,
personalities and identities. But over
time we talked, we started to coexist
and the interculturalism started: this
refers to the mutual enrichment
between cultures.
By the time we had to live together
in the same space, we begin the
recognition and valuation of each of
us in a framework of equality. And the
trip began, time by time the
communication became easier, and we
were able to make new friends.
Language played an important role
in this whole adventure, because we
were forced to communicate in
English, but sometimes it was easier
to do it with our body language,
teaching us that language is just a
matter of social symbols and
signicance.
I believe that being in touch with
many cultures gives you the
opportunity to meet awesome people
and also to get to know yourself
better, and learn and teach things you
know like your own culture. It is a
matter of learning to give and to take,
which I think would contributed to
the maturation of humanity.
PERSONAL AND CULTURAL DEVELOPMENT IN THE ACCP
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 11
By Xiao Meng
You know, everything in Texas is bi#er.
When someone told me this, I felt
so curious about this strange state in
the US. And after I got o# the plane,
the ubiquitous air condition and the
huge size of trucks surprised me
completely.
And after that shock, the size of
the school astonished me again. UNT
is like a huge greenhouse. There are a
lot of bushes and trees built on this
beautiful campus. Squirrels play hide
and seek with you everywhere. I think
it might be the reason why teachers
and students over here like to wear a
green T!shirt with big UNT logo.
Another shock is about American
patriotism. You can see the American
ag everywhere. Its very common in
America but really rare in China. And
I think that maybe the reason is to
make Americans devoted to and
contribute to their great country.
The nal shock is from the source
of education here. In China, maybe
every American student cant believe
that a computer wont be thrown away
until more than twenty years later. Let
alone the software. They have
thousands of books in their library
and that makes American students get
more achievements!
All of those things shocked me
because they make this energetic
country get better. I am so glad that I
can be here for a month.
THE CULTURE SHOCK I GOT IN AMERICA
MEXICAN INFLUENCE IN TEXAS
By Amaranta Hernandez
Our nation $USA% is built upon a
history of immigration, dating back to our
rst pioneers, the Pilgrims. For more than
three centuries, we have welcomed
generations of immigrants to our melting
pot of hyphenated America: British!
Americans; Italian!Americans; Irish!
Americans; Jewish!Americans; Mexican!
Americans; Chinese!Americans; Indian!
Americans. !! Ami Bera
Mexico and The Unites States of
America have a very long history
about sharing culture and traditions.
Nowadays it is very common to see
the inuence of the Mexican people
in the south territory of the USA,
especially Texas. Texas without
Mexicans would not be Texas.
One of the best examples about
this mix is the food. It is called Tex!
Mex and is dened as a combination
of the words "Texan" and "Mexican,"
that refers to an adaptation of
Mexican dishes by Texas cooks. Tex!
Mex restaurants rst surfaced outside
the southwest region in cities with
large Mexican populations. This type
of food mixes some elements, e.g.,
beans, chili, meat, and tortillas to
create a completely di#erent cuisine.
Another great example of the
impact of Mexican immigration is
that in many places you can hear or
read Spanish. Although Spanish is not
an exclusive language of Mexico,
many of the native speakers in Texas
are Mexicans. You can walk
downtown Dallas and hear a mother
talking with her daughters in Spanish
or go shopping and the sales
attendant helps you in Spanish.
The clothes used by the cowboys
at the rodeo are also very similar to
the North Mexico style. They use hat,
boots and pants for work as Mexican
Farmers in the North do. Also in the
rodeo some of the skills that make a
good cowboy are adapted from
traditional charreria. Charreria is a
competitive event similar to rodeo
and was developed from animal
husbandry practices used on the
haciendas of old Mexico.
To sum up, Mexico has been a
very important inuence to the actual
Texan lifestyle. Many Latin!
Americans, not just Mexicans, enter
to the USA everyday looking for
opportunities to study and work.
Because of that I believe that the
American government should
improve their immigration polities to
increase the security of those people.
Give them as me, an opportunity to
see how great USA is and to be proud
of our origins.
Fort Worth Stockyards Championship Rodeo.
With my classmates at UNT.
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 12
SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE US AND CHINA
By Gabriela Alejandra Castro
Hernndez
Imagine that it is your rst day at
work and you will have a business
meeting with Chinese people in order
to develop a new product, or with
Indian people so as to generate a new
software. How do you prepare for
that meeting? Do you know about
their culture and the way they have to
do business?
One day an Account Manager
told me that the way we play games is
the same way we live our lives.
Educational games and experiential
learning are the techniques used in
this Summer Course with an excellent
bonus: the multicultural experience.
There were 121 countries
represented in the International
program of University of North
Texas . The top ten list includes
countries such as China, India, Korea,
Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Taiwan, Nepal,
Vietnam, Nigeria and Canada. So
imagine all the di#erent people we
met and how much we could learn
about their culture; or when working
with them for a project, or sharing a
good time during relaxation time.
How can we use all this learning?
If we consider the countries that
participated in the program in
relation to the trade balance we hold
with them; we can observe that with a
79.71' of our exports, our principal
commercial partner is The United
States. On the other hand, China is
our second business partner. The
commercial interchange with that
country has increased 30' since
2001 . Even though this is an English
Program, we got along with people
from di#erent countries and we knew
not only about culture but also about
how to write a bio, a professional
resume, a professional cover letter or
some tips for an interview to get a
job. And we had the opportunity to
take a Bachelors class, it was amazing!
Besides, we could notice the
di#erences in the way in which we
work; for instance, Mexicans like
explaining in detail, but Americans
prefer going directly to the point.
Another important di#erence is how
Americans manage time, all the
activities start on time, including the
transportation system; we must
consider it in a business meeting.
MULTICULTURAL EXPERIENCE
ACCP students observing a UNT class.
By Sun Jing Wei $Je#%
I have been living in China for
24 years. I was born in the Jiang Xi
province and also grew up there. This
year I have had the chance to visit
America by myself. Before I came to
America, the only way for me to
know this country was through the
media. For example, Hollywood
movies, TV shows, etc. Although this
is just a 3!week ACCP, this trip has
given me many rst experiences.
First of all, I will mention
addressing. In China, we put the
family names before our given names,
and then in order to express our
politeness, we add sir or lady or a title
after the name. By contrast, in
America, people put their family
names after their given names and put
Mr. or Mrs. before their names. It is
good for us to know these di#erences
so we dont have misunderstandings.
In America, the beat of life is
also quite fast, so they consider that
time is money. When they accept an
invitation, they would try their best
not to be late but they also dont go
early to the event, as this is
considered to be impolite. In China,
we should also not be late for events.
However, to show our thanks and
politeness, we go to the inviters house
early to help them prepare the meals.
Finally, I would like to mention
something about the di#erence in
food. Chinese diet is a sense of beauty
and pays attention to the color, avor,
and taste, regardless of the nutrition.
Chinese people choose food very
carefully, they only use fresh materials
in order to make delicious food but in
American they dont have fresh food
because they buy their food from the
supermarket. Also they prefer fast
food like burgers, chips and hot dogs,
which are not healthy to the body.
This list can go on and on and on,
because America and China are so
di#erent. In fact, we cant say which
one is right and which one is wrong. I
just hope we can respect each
countries customs.
Delicious Chinese food.
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 13
The expression the leaves blow/y
because in Chinese there is a totally
di#erent manner of expression.
! Xue Bowen
I liked the vocabulary topics of
shopping, Hollywood and business,
and law terminology because Im
studying political science.
! Shaid Huertas Cortez
No pain no gain because I believe if
you work hard you will have success.
! Deng Qin $Anderson%
When pigs y! because its an
expression that in Mexico is used
di#erently.
! Karol Percastre Esteban
Brother from another mother
because we have something similar in
Mexico. I think its the most
common thing between Mexico and
the US !! we are very friendly, warm,
and kind.
! Oscar Alvaro Montes de Oca
Dressed to kill!
! Huang Boalian $Bessie%
Q&A
I learned so many things about the
culture here. I think its a completely
di#erent world but I like it. I liked
learning about many things like
values and the importance of rights.
! Gabriela Rugerio Estrada
The most surprising thing is the
facilities. They are more advanced
than in China. Also the civilization is
very open and everyone is very
polite.
! Deng Qin $Anderson%
The people are very nice and try to
help you out to do everything. Its fun
to stay here!
! Karol Percastre Esteban
Favorite English vocabulary word, slang, or idiom you learned this summer?
What did you learn about the US or about Americans that was di!erent than
you thought?
I think UNT has a cool culture.
When I entered the UNT rooms for
the rst time I felt this culture!
Maybe in China in bigger colleges we
have a similar feeling.
! Qiao Guodong $Josh%
I think it is the environment. There
are more trees and cute squirrels
everywhere. Its amazing and it
cannot be seen in China!
! Gao Xiang $Roger%
I really love UNT. Its amazing
because I feel the life of an American
student for three weeks. The culture
is di#erent because many young
people go to live alone far from their
parents. Its di#erent because you
have to be independent.
! Sandra Maldonado Dominguez
What is your favorite thing about UNT?
Speaking and writing I think are the
most important skills for learning
English to form a habit of thinking in
an American way. The only way is to
speak/write like a native speaker.
! Huang Baolian $Bessie%
Writing because I dont like writing.
! Guo Haiwei $Kitty%
I think speaking because if you are
writing/reading you are alone and
dont have to interact with another
person. You dont have to understand
and answer questions as with
speaking.
! Gabriela Rugerio Estrada
What is the most cha"enging about learning English?
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 14
ACCP, A VALUABLE TEACHING EXPERIENCE
By Pablo Daniel Cajero Mercado
Have you ever been on a trip that
has changed the way you study or
work? Is there a way a 3!week
program makes you become a better
student and a professional guy? Well,
thats the case with the ACCP. It has
been not only an incredible trip for
me where I met a lot of people and
had a lot of fun, but also an
opportunity to learn how to improve
my professional career and personal
goals. If you keep reading until the
end youll nd out how the ACCP was
a remarkable experience for my life.
First of all, I have always loved
American culture. It has a lot of
things I really want to have in my
personal life. So, coming here is
always a really nice experience for me.
Its not my rst time here in the US,
but I think it is the rst time I have
had the chance to practice my English
daily and to learn a lot of American
cultural values. Being here has been a
very exciting time. I have been away
from the daily routine, away from a
lot of stress and very close to friendly
guys and very cool sta# members.
I have to admit it, Lisas class is
amazing! She and Dina are amazing
teachers with a lovely and friendly
heart that helps us enjoy every one of
their classes. I learned a lot of things
and had a lot of fun in Lisas class.
Paige is also a wonderful smiley and
happy lady. I love the way she talks to
us and how she always wants to make
sure we understand everything in
class. Brandon and Tyler are very cool,
professional and serious guys that are
willing to teach us how to apply for a
job in the best way possible.
Besides everything I learned in
classes there are a lot of things that
cant be taught or learned in a
classroom. For example, I learned
that to be on time. Its a very good
thing that can really help a student
improve their daily routine to be
more e&cient. It looks like there is a
tattoo on American brains saying
DONT BE LATE. I think I will do
the same once Im back home. Im
sure it will help me a lot not only as a
student, but also later as a physician.
Ive seen that people who are on time
everywhere they go can make a very
good use of the time to do everything
they planned to do. As a student thats
very important because you have to
be very smart about your timing so
that you can do all the things your
studies demand.
Im doing a major in Medicine.
Being honest, there wasnt a class that
helped me regarding Medicine issues,
but all the values I learned from this
trip will help me be a better student.
They will help me achieve the goals I
have for the future and Im pretty
sure it will make me enjoy every single
step of my professional career. If you
do what you love the way you love
doing it you will have joy and success
in everything you do.
EXPERIENCE STORIES
ACCP students at Legends Ha".
By Javier Lapa Guzman
One month ago, I received a call
from the secretary of UAEM
$UAPCI%, to ask me if I was
interested in participating in a
summer seminar at UNT for
improving my skills in English
Language. Obviously, I answered
Yes as quickly as I could.
Always I have thought that in a
University you learn not only in the
classrooms, but also maybe you learn
more out of the classrooms. Permit
me to explain this point. The
University not only implies to take
classes, also you know di#erent
people and this allows you exchange
ideas and opinions with them. This
means that you can understand other
cultures and di#erent ways to see life,
and this is knowledge too. In this
sense the UNT summer seminar has
been an interesting experience,
because it allowed me know other
cultures through the people that I
have spoken to during these days.
I have had the opportunity to ask
Chinese citizens about their country,
specically their economic situation,
and the governments role in the
society. That allows me do some
reections. Maybe the most
important is that Mexico and China
have a lot of similarities, for example:
problems of overpopulation,
corruption in the government and an
important inequality in the
distribution of wealth. I also
understand the commitment and love
of the Mexicans and Chinese for their
respective country is the other
similarity, because all of us work to
change and improve our situation.
Alternatively, I could see the high
rate of life that the United States has,
is incredible the level of consumption
of this society. As result it is evident
that this is the principal economic
characteristic of this country. Thus,
the characteristic problems of each
country make them similar.
A WORLD OF CONTRASTS
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 15
By Jesica Salas
It is the supreme art of the teacher to
awaken joy in creative expression and
knowledge. ! Albert Einstein
Im a teacher in the major of
International Business at UAEM. The
purpose of coming to the UNT
summer camp was to improve my
English. The objective is that in the
near future I can teach to my students
the major topics in a complete
English class. The reason is because
UAEM wants that the students be
more prepared to obtain better jobs.
If the students are bilingual they
can have more opportunities to nd
jobs around the world. Thats the
reason why I just not only came for
studying the language, I came to
observe the technique of teaching
from di#erent teachers that I had in
the ACCP program because I wanted
to learn about them.
It was a great experience to learn
of them and now they have given me a
new ideas that help me to improve my
classes. The Advanced class and the
workshops teach me many activities
that would help me to do more
interesting and dynamic classes.
On the other hand, I had the
opportunity to make new friends not
just from my country but also from
another country, China. Always the
chance to mix culture experiences and
learn another way of living is so
enriching.
For an additional bonus in the
ACCP experience we had many tours
that taught me more of the USA
culture and I learned another way of
thinking.
In conclusion not only in this
summer camp have I improve the
language, in addition I take with me
much learning about the way of
teaching. I think whole program it
was a great experience.
HOW THE ACCP EXPERIENCE CONTRIBUTES TO MY WORK
UAEM students at the ACCP orientation.
MY EXPERIENCE WITH CHINESE STUDENTS IN THE ACCP
By Ana Karla Dacomba Martinez
Traveling alone for the rst time
to another country is hard but if you
are in the American Culture and
Communication Program $ACCP% all
changes. This is my experience in the
ACCP about how I met new people
and how I tried to communicate in
English with Chinese students.
Everything began when I arrived
to the rst day of class in the Business
Leadership Building in UNT and I
realized that we were going to be the
3 weeks with Chinese students. My
rst thought was, oh no! I dont
know how to speak Chinese, and
that was the moment when the
adventure started. The rst day I had
lunch with a new Chinese friend and
it was so complicated to
communicate because our accents are
so di#erent, but at the end of the day
we did it. The next day I had the
chance to meet more Chinese
students and it was so hilarious
because we had to nd a way to
communicate with words and body
language.
I will never forget the day I was
eating lunch with a Chinese student
and we were asking things about our
culture, our families, our likes and
dislikes, etc. The Chinese student
asked me if I liked to drink tea so I
started to shake my hand because in
my country that means so so. I
assumed she would understand, but
she didnt understand and it was
funny because she looked at me with
a face like (what does it mean? What
did you just do? So I started to
explain to her what it means in my
country.
During the three weeks besides
learning English and the culture of
USA I learned a little bit of Chinese
and their culture. What I learned
from this program is it doesnt matter
where we live in the world, everyone
and every culture is di#erent and I
enjoyed learning new things. I met
new people and new friends and I will
never forget them.
Tour of downtown Denton.
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 16
By Siri Knutson
When I rst arrived to Texas I
didnt know what to expect. The only
references I had were things one of
my cousins from Mexico told me $and
they were bad%. But, during the course
of these 3 weeks I have learned a lot
and this experience has given me life
lessons that I will never forget. Here
are some examples:
First $and I think the most
important%: Friends are forever. This
program gave me the opportunity to
meet people from my own town,
Texas, and even China! I will return to
Mexico and tell everyone that I have
made awesome friends that Im going
to keep in touch with. As the famous
quote says: Friends are the family you
choose for yourself.
Second: No matter where you
come from, you are a cool and
awesome person. One of the things I
like the most about UNT is the
student diversity. Name the country
and theres a student from there.
Third: Due to the large diversity of
the student population here at UNT,
the only way we can communicate is
through English.That way we can
practice and improve our English. I
think in this time mine has improved.
Fourth: Even if your teachers look
tough at rst, they are sweet and nice
and will try everything to make your
experience in Texas the best.
Lastly: EVERYONE IS NICE IN
TEXAS!!
In conclusion, this is a program I
will recommend to everyone who
wants to improve their English. And
this is not only about the language: its
about making friends worldwide,
trying new things you dont have in
your home country and just enjoying!!
LIFE LESSONS LEARNED AT UNT
THE EXPERIENCE OF HAVING DINNER WITH AN AMERICAN
By Silvia Cristina Jaramillo Manzur
Have you ever realized the
di#erences between your country and
the United States? I hadnt until I
went to have dinner with an
American; and fortunately there was
an Arab girl too.
The rst Sunday of the American
Culture and Communication Program
I went to have Dinner with Cassie, an
American girl who invite me and
some of my friends to have dinner at
her apartment. When we arrived we
realized that Dina, her roomie was
going to stay there too. While we
were having dinner, I realized there
are several di#erences between Arab,
American and Mexican countries.
First of all I realized that here in
the United States, people start living
alone at a younger age. In Mexico
that isnt as common as here. We use
to live with our parents when
attending school; or probably some of
them live alone from Monday to
Friday and return back home on the
weekend. I also appreciated that here,
the students have better apartments
than the Mexican students. As
Mexican people, here they are very
good hostesses. When we arrived,
Cassie had already written our menu,
and they started by giving us the
drinks.
As the second point I want to
mention the food. I really enjoyed the
dinner. We ate hotdogs, chips,
corndogs and soda. The food was
really good but I have to admit that I
prefer Mexican food. I think that in
our country, everything is more
natural, and the avor is better. Here
in the United States everything is
conserved and packed. In spite of
that I really enjoyed the food.
While we were having dinner I
had a great time. We were talking
about each other and about music. I
realized that some of the Mexican
guys used to listen to the same kind
of music of the Americans. When we
nished, Dina the Arabic girl told us
something about her culture. It was
great, because she also taught us how
to write our name in Arabic. Both of
the hostesses were really kind with us.
They made me feel like I was in my
own home. I had a great time!!!!
Dinner with an American hosted by
Cassandra & Dina.
Siri Knutson and Chip Cu"um.
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 17
ACCP EXPERIENCE CONTRIBUTES TO MY MAJOR
By Sun Manyi $Serena%
Which major benets the most
through the ACCP experience? The
answer is varied. As an English major
student, I believe this experience
contributes a lot to my major.
First and foremost, it will be
easier for me to experience culture
shock directly after experiencing
di#erent behavior among other
cultures. Such as, behaviors noticed
during daily living in a place full of
English speakers. For instance, they
wont take an umbrella with them to
protect them from sunlight. And
actually, on the contrary, they
appreciate it. And that is quite
di#erent from Chinese. Then, it
promotes my communicative skill
with foreigners. Some common,
authentic, and polite expressions were
introduced by Paige like, would you
mind me using a couple of minutes
and asking you some questions for my
English class, which can be used at
the beginning of an interview. Finally,
more interests in the exotic cultures
are developed. And I get a more clear
understanding about culture in Texas
through the trip to stockyard and
some speeches by professors.
From the points above, it can be
naturally concluded that ACCP
experiences do have a positive impact
on my major in a comprehensive way.
The Denton Courthouse.
By Vanesa Knutson
This isnt the rst time Ive been
in the United States, but it certainly is
the rst time Ive stayed for more
than two weeks. The experience
didnt disappoint one bit. The fun
activities, staying at Legends Hall, the
really nice people, and even the
weather; these are just a few of the
things Ill remember with great
fondness. But one of the things that
caught my eye is that I got the chance
to see and interact with people who
like to express themselves in a way I
like as well: bright!colored hair dye.
Ive been dying my hair with
bright colors since I was 18, and since
pink is my favorite color it sort of
became my signature look.
However, Mexican culture can
sometimes be harsh on people who do
not follow the established rules I
cant even count the number of times
people have looked down on me just
because of my hair color; it doesnt
a#ect me though, when you really like
something and are really passionate
about it what other people think is
the least of your problems.
I think what I loved the most
about these three fantastic weeks is
that here at UNT I got to interact
with people with bright!colored hair,
and that everyone is really nice. Every
day I got complimented because of
my hair color. Random strangers came
up to me and told me how they like
my hair, and I got the opportunity to
see and talk to a bunch of students
with really awesome hair.
So Ive already mention what Ill
remember from this experience, but
the life!lesson I take with me back to
Mexico is: just be yourself. Sometimes
people can be mean, I know that, and
some other times youll be judged
because of your looks, but having
faith in people pays o#. Ill go back to
Mexico with unforgettable memories,
having international friends and being
cherished by people who appreciate
me for who I am and for what I like.
This was an amazing experience!
Thank you, Texas!
TO BE OR NOT TO BE... SELF!EXPRESSION AT UNT
Having lunch at Bruce Cafeteria.
By Antonio Rodriguez Sandoval
As the popular saying goes,
theres a link between our physical
health and psychological well!being.
At the UNT summer program
you can nd many programs, not only
for academics, but also sports
activities have a signicant
importance in a students life. These
include indoor and outdoors,
depending on the season; indoors like
lifting weights, running, and climbing
$my favorite since now%; outdoors
includes hiking, running, and
basketball.
So, theres no reason for a lazy
summer. You can make a connection
with your sporty soul and enjoy at the
same time academics and the benets
of a sporty life.
HEALTHY MIND IN A HEALTHY BODY
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 18
By Li Guannan $Joe%
It is an amazing and exciting 3
weeks of classes, o#!campus
excursions and evening activities for
me. Not only giving our Chinese
students a new way to learn English,
but also help us integrate with
Americans and their life style quickly.
The method to learn English in
UNT is totally di#erent than in
China. The ultimate goal to learn
English is rather to communicate with
each other than to pass exams. At the
beginning of each class in the rst
week, the teacher always prepared an
ice breaker for us, it is a great way to
help us to get to know each other
well. After the ice break, every
student in the class will break their
psychological defense to open mouths
to talk with each other. As a result we
can learn English pronunciation,
American culture, and many things
related to the United States smoothly.
The o#!campus excursions and
evening activities make us better
understand the Denton culture.
Denton is such an awesome place,
people are very friendly and
welcoming. I have the habit of
running in the morning. During my
running in Denton, each person I
encountered would say Good
morning to me even if they never
met me before. Its a great feeling for
me. I cant imagine this happy
experience in China.
Thank you so much, UNT! I will
never forget this incredible
experience. Our Chinese students
really appreciate all the things you did
for us, we had a really good time here,
its a very good university, and I am
sure that I will come back someday.
I love you, UNT! I love you, Denton
Texas! I love you, United States!
AMAZING EXPERIENCE AT UNT IN DENTON, TEXAS
MY ACCP EXPERIENCE STORY
By Zhao Xingchuang $Ari% July 21st, I went to the gym for
rock climbing. Its my rst time to
experience this extreme sport. With
the help of an American guy, I did
make it and challenged myself. Before
coming here, I was ready to try every
new thing in the US. As a sport man I
like di#erent sports and am curious
about new things. Without thinking
too much, my friends and I went to
the gym in the afternoon. Looking at
the rock climbing wall, I told the guys
I wanted to climb the most di&cult
line. As I never experienced this sport
before, those guys were very
warmhearted and taught me many
climbing skills. I knew that Ive
challenged myself and succeeded.
Rock climbing is not only a
great way to work out while having
fun, but it will change the way you
move, think, and feel about yourself. I
will never forget the awesome
experience.
Rock climbing at the UNT Rec Center.
Enjoying ice cream at Beth Maries in Denton.
By Gaby Rugerio
Can you imagine yourself having
dinner with a person in other
language that you just meet 1 week
ago? Maybe this could sound scary at
rst but its much more fun and
gratifying than you can think.
Dina and Cassie are two young
and beautiful American girls that
opened their apartment to me and 3
other people to have a dinner. The
adventure started when we arrived to
their cozy at, which is actually really
nice; the dinner was cooked by them
and consisted of hot dogs, corn dogs,
chips, sodas and $my favorite part%
vanilla ice cream with chocolate chips
cookies. Very American!
Suddenly I realized that they
were not too much di#erent from me
and quickly we became friends. We
sang a lot of songs, watched videos on
you tube and talked about music and
movies with a lot of laughs. It was a
wonderful night.
I learned about how the life of a
student is in the USA, how their
culture is and the things that a typical
American does; but, the most
important thing that this dinner left
me with was an amazing friend. It is
easy have a conversation with Dina.
We always have a topic to talk about
and something to say and also she is
kind, gentle and so sweet; if I had to
choose, she denitely would be my
favorite person at UNT.
AMERICAN FRIENDS!
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 19
By Annette Natalie Medina
Hernandez
If you want to experience one of
the best things in Texas you would
denitely have to go to the
Stockyards. This is one of the places
where you can nd real cowboys and
enjoy a wonderful rodeo, actually just
like you have seen it in cowboys
movies. Going there was like being in
a movie.
First of all I was amazed by the
cattle driving. Lots of people go to
the Stockyards just to see that. We
were waiting for a few minutes just to
see the appearance that lasted just a
minute. There were some beautiful
and really big long horn bulls. I could
realized there were lots of di#erent
types of bulls. It was so exciting
because I feel fear to have them so
close, but some of the cowboys were
leading them with their really tall and
beautiful horses and their whip.
Secondly I was surprise by nding
the name of my home city, Toluca, as
an international sister city of Fort
Worth which was something that
amazed all of the Mexican people that
were there. We realized this while we
were walking through the Stockyards
visitor center to get a sheri# star
which we all wore the whole day.
While we were waiting for the
Rodeo, we walked all around the
Stockyards which is full of amazing
souvenirs shops. All of my friends and
I bought several things for our family.
We also went to eat at an amazing
restaurant called Risckys where you
can eat all the ribs you can for just
9.99 dollars. We had a great time
there!!!
Lastly we went to the rodeo
where we had a lot of fun! I had never
seen something like that. The
spectacle started with the cowboys, it
was really exciting and everyone was
shouting. I was surprised to see
women acting. They made a special
show were they had to make some
spins in the least time.
I denitely recommend this
place, I had a lot of fun and its
something you cant see every day.
FAVORITE EXCURSION: STOCKYARDS EXPLORATION
ACCP students in the Fort Worth historic
district.
By Jessica Guadalupe Agustin
Hernandez
When you are abroad and you do
not know anyonehave you ever
thought about: If the traditions and
customs from others will interfere in
your relationships with them? If the
social and dancing skills you acquired
in your country will help you to
interact better in English?
So those were some questions
that crossed my mind before I came
to UNT. However, something that I
was very sure about was that I really
wanted to be here because learning
and having fun are two aspects that
have to be in my life. During my stay
the coordinators organized di#erent
nice activities to include those
aspects. Among all the activities, the
Dinner with the Americans was the
best one for me.
First of all, American life has
been something that I wanted to
know. Many people had talked to me
about it, but I wanted to know it
myself. Nevertheless, going to Lisa s
house opened my thinking more. That
day, Lisa, Dina and Zak prepared a
delicious dinner for my classmates
and me, so we tasted new food and of
course, it was wonderful for us.
Among the activities we did, we
played Heads up; a funny game in
which the participants have to guess
the words through mimicking, danced
a little bit of Cumbia $a Mexican
style of music%, and talked about our
majors, native food and of coursewe
had fun laughing a lot!
I consider that traditions and
customs from the other people are
not an obstacle to establish excellent
relationships: on the contrary, they
can be a way to share what we are and
what we do. With this American
experience I could learn and have fun
at the same time. I am very thankful
with the sta# for their e#ort to make
us feel comfortable everywhere we
were. Thank you so much: Lisa, Dina,
and Zak!
THE GREATEST DINNER WITH AMERICANS!
Dinner with many Americans.
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 20
LEARNING ABOUT AMERICAN CULTURE AND MAKING FRIENDS
By Li Huanghe $April%
After nearly 14 hours of ight, I
arrived in Denton, TX on July 6,2014.
This is the rst time I have ever left
my country, China. With excitement
and a little bit of nervousness for a
new environment, I start my
memorable experience at UNT.
I was regarded as an Advanced
student after the placement exam. It
was really worth being proud since
Lisas class is my favorite. Each day of
our class we practiced pronunciation.
We had a lot fun since our Chinese
speakers and Spanish speakers have
di&culties in some pronunciation
such as j/y and r/l. How much fun I
had studying with Mexican friends!
We Chinese teach them Chinese ni
hao means hello and wo ai ni means
I love you. I also wrote a Chinese
sentence for my best Mexican friend,
Shaid. In English it means I will love
my family forever. At that time I
thought about my country and family,
the sense of love is deepened being in
a foreign country.
Luckily I am and there are so
many friends by my side. Though we
are from a di#erent country and have
a di#erent culture, it cant keep us
away from each other. Friendship is
something from your inner heart.
Shaid is a good friend and he is a bit
shy with not too much words, but hes
really a good listener. In Lisas class,
we also learned American culture.
Everyday we had a cultural topic, the
most impressive is daily routine and
time. I have heard before that
Americans values e&ciency and
punctuality but didnt know the
degree.
Time ies and I will leave UNT
soon. There are so many people and
things I want to share with you. A
thousand words merged into one
sentence: memories never fade.
April & Shaid at Bowling & Arcade Night.
By Hong Yangchen $Orange%
I visited the family of Kendalls
mother on July 20, 2014. It was a nice
day and the sun was shining brightly.
Brandon and Kendall drove their car
with Yang, Zhao, Xiao and me to their
moms house, where there was a big
lunch like Thanksgiving Day. Its very
kind of Brandon and Kendall, and I
love them very much.
Its the rst time at an American
house for me. Kendalls mother was
very kind, and gave us a big warm hug.
I love animals very much, so my eyes
were pinned to the black healthy and
lovely dog, Izzy. We enjoyed an
incomparable lunch: turkey with ice
cream, mashed potato with soup,
baked corn, green beans with sauce
and sweet apple pie.
Kendalls mother is a good talker,
humorous and optimistic. After lunch,
she gave us a bag of chips, gave us a
big hug again and whispered, Thanks
for coming.
As the famous saying goes, you may
not remember what happened to you,
but you will never forget the feeling
about that. Its no doubt that
American friendliness and passion will
be always kept in my heart forever.
ONE DAY I WILL NEVER FORGET
By Gabriela Romero
For the last 3 weeks a group of
students and I came to UNT for a
summer program. The program has
students from Mexico, China, Hong
Kong, and Taiwan. The experience to
be with them is something special
that this program has given us.
When I was a kid I lived for a
while in Racine, Wisconsin. I used to
go to school and had a lot of friends,
so knowing that I was coming back to
USA felt amazing. But this experience
is di#erent because I came by myself
and that makes it a special adventure.
I call this my UNT experience
because I had the opportunity to
meet new friends from other cultures
and exchange ways to think. I had so
much fun at UNT, I didnt have to
worry about anything, just enjoy my
time and get the best from it.
The best part of this program is
that even if I need to go to classes
during the week in the afternoon, the
sta# always had something di#erent
to do. And also the trips to Denton,
Dallas, and Fort Worth were exciting.
Before I came here, I had many
expectations about UNT, most of
them were good, but now I realized
that this fun experience has overcome
my expectations. I love UNT, and I
would be glad if I can come again. I
would tell all my friends if they have
the chance to come to not miss it.
SHORT TIME... GREAT MEMORIES!
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 21
CLASS EXPERIENCE AT UNT
By Huang Baolian $Bessie%
In my 20 years of school
studying, I have experienced many
di#erent classes, and most in China.
This summer I am lucky enough to be
given an excellent chance to
experience a total di#erent class in
American Culture and
Communication Program. After three
weeks of campus life, I have had a lot
of valuable and meaningful class
experiences.
What impressed me most is the
positive attitude that the teachers
give you: being condent about
yourself. I remembered in the rst
class, Lisa told us to play a game
called Show My Name. At rst I
thought it was impossible for me,
because I always have a bad memory.
I denitely cant keep more than 20
peoples names in such a short time.
Lisa and her assistant Dina kept
encouraging us to believe yourself,
and you could do it. Surprisingly, I did
it successfully. What a miracle! I cant
believe myself either. That is the
power of condence. You never know
what will happen if you just keep
thinking and being afraid and dare
not to move forward. This interaction
taught me to be brave, believe myself,
and dare to do something.
I also noticed a big di#erence in
teaching methods between China and
America. That is the American way
stresses practice. Of course, practice
makes perfect. Whenever we were
told a new concept or a new language
point, we were encouraged to practice
in di#erent ways, such as listening or
dictation immediately. Sometimes, we
may do a little conversation in small
group; sometimes we combine it with
class games, which made the class
more active and made us learn it
easier. However in china, we seldom
do that. The Chinese just merely
infuse the knowledge and ask us to
cram, which only causes uselessness. I
think it does no good to our
advancement.
Another big di#erence I found in
class is that Americans pay more
attention to group cooperation. We
had two teachers: Lisa and Dina. The
advantage is that they can make the
class more e&cient and can look after
almost every student. Not only did
teachers cooperate, but also students
worked together. During this process,
the relationship between students
bonded more and they learned each
other more. Whats more, we gained
e&cacy. We are used to doing things
alone in China. But when I came here
I perceived group work speeded up
study. We exchanged opinions, and we
got improvement. Thats wonderful.
There are many good things
about American teaching, like
questions encouraged and free
opinions expressed. These great
values gave me reection about
education in China. If I become a
teacher in future, I would spread
these good ways to China. Thanks to
all the teachers and classmates in this
summer program, I enjoyed a
wonderful time in my life. I would
keep this trip in my memory forever.
Bessie's surprise birthday party!
By Daniel Torres Cejudo
This holiday I had such a good
experience. It was my very rst time I
went to a foreign house speaking
another language, which is not my
mother tongue. Have you ever been
abroad and had dinner with a native
speaker?
This summer was very special to
me because of that. We went to the
Lisas friend house, she had the dinner
cooked for us, which was amazing and
very tasteful. The menu was:
Garden salad
Spaghetti Bolognese
Shrimp Fettuccini Alfredo
Ice cream and Zaks Dessert
Despite the language di#erences
we were able to improve our English
uency through cultural immersion
$according to UNT! International
Summer Institute%, and it is true
because we had to speak up in order
to play a game or to have a beverage.
Personally, I was thrilled and very
grateful with Lisas kindness, as she
showed us her friends place. I wish I
were younger in order to apply again
for this amazing opportunity since I
am a senior Computer Science
student at UAEMex.
HAVING DINNER WITH AMERICAN NATIVES
UAEM students with Lisa, Dina, & Zak.
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 22
By Ma Yanfang $Vanessa%
This summer, I have attended a
great program with my classmates at
UNT. Not only learning, but I also
had a good time in America.
When we came here, we attended
an exam with other students from
Mexico. Then we were divided into
three classes and that is my favorite
class of all. For one thing, I can learn
the correct pronunciation of the
words, and know a lot about
American culture such as
communicative style, Hollywood and
business, fashion and shopping and so
on. After learning these topics I can
interact with American people
naturally. At the same time, the class
atmosphere is active and all the
students attend the class.
Second, we play games with each
other. At the rst class, we played a
game where we sat in a circle and we
said the name before you one by one
to remember everyones name. We
used the new words to describe the
movie for our partner. The other
activity was a tongue twister, which is
also very funny. We practiced together
and read aloud to the other groups,
which is unforgettable for everyone.
I chose Paiges class and Brandons
Professional Development workshop.
We also had lunch in Bruce Hall, and
the food is abundant.
We had a tour of downtown
Denton and ice cream social with all
the students. I chatted with my
Mexican friend Amaranta during
walking to ice cream shop. She is a
medical science student. We also ate
ice cream together and had a nice day!
Traveling cant go without
shopping and visiting the museum; we
went to Dallas North Park mall and
the Sixth Floor museum.
Three weeks is too short for us to
know America. Lisas class helped me
learn a lot about the true life in
America. Meanwhile, I really had a
good time with my friend Amaranta,
the UNT trip broadened my horizons
and is meaningful to me.
MY EXPERIENCE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS
FRIENDS
By Carlos Martinez Brito
China, Mexico and the USA
have di#erent culture, food, lifestyles
and population but they also have
nice people to meet. Mexico and the
USA are very near to each other but
China is far away. Do you expect that
the 3 countries can make good friends
or have a good relationship?
The UNT summer ESL program
has been going on since 2008. They
have always had Chinese students and
Mexican students but always
separated in to two groups. They had
di#erent activities and classes so they
never had the chance to talk to each
other, until now. This year the UNT
summer program decided to mix the
two groups and make one big mixed
group. I am a Mexican student who
takes classes with Chinese students, I
also have activities in the evening and
dinner with them and with American
students too.
Making friends is a really di&cult
thing to do and is even more di&cult
if you have to talk in another
language. But in this program you
have the chance to do that. But I
have been making good friends since
the program started. Chinese and
American people are very di#erent.
Americans have relationships with a
non! contact culture, Mexicans have
the opposite of that and Chinese are
in the middle. Every group has its
own crowd but sometimes you can
have a mixed group and thats a lot of
fun and a very good time.
With this program I have the
chance to make good friends,
Americans like Alex, Cassandra, Dina,
and Tyler. Also I have Chinese friends
like Je#, Xiao and Ari even though we
are from di#erent countries I have a
good relationship with them. Perhaps
you cannot make friends every time,
but you can make friends no matter
where they were born. Distance and
di#erent cultures are not a problem
when you are talking about friends.
Bowling & Arcade Night at Main Event.
Vanessa at the ACCP Orientation.
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 23
CLASS EXPERIENCE AT UNT
By Zhao Xiaoyu $Rain%
The ACCP has abundant
activities which are very funny and
meaningful. I learned a lot of
American culture and this is
something I had never known.The
most important point is that the
ACCP makes me become more
positive in my life.
The clean and tidy dormitory
moved me rst! The wonderful
dormitory gave me a big surprise
which is more excellent than I have
imaged.Also,the dormitory makes me
have a nice mood everyday.
The wonderful environment of
UNT is absolutely suitable for living.
Everywhere you can see lovely
squirrels and ourished trees.It is a
beautiful scenery of harmony
between human!beings and nature.I
am really enjoying in this place!
A complete gym makes
everybody keep exercising!Personally,
I like sports, so it is a wonderful place
for a sport man and I exercise in the
gym when I am free.The biggest
harvest for me is that I have learned
how to swim which makes me very
proud and happy!
Communicating with di#erent
people from di#erent countries lets
me learn a lot. I am very curious
about culture of di#erent countries.
So when l communicate with people
in di#erent countries, I am very
excited and learn a lot. By learning
di#erent cultures, I learn the world
comprehensively and know the
importance of consideration.
After all, I think the ACCP is a
new start for my life because it gives
me a new lifestyle, a new view and a
new value. America is a place where
everybody should depend on
themselves. It is an equal platform for
everybody which is quiet di#erent
from China.The ACCP gives me a
chance to learn American culture and
enjoy American lifestyle which
denitely will inuence my life.
Working out at the UNT Rec Center.
By Wu Xiaomei $Allen%
Since being at UNT, everyday is a
nice day. This is my rst time to be
abroad and be in America. When we
arrived in Denton,we all felt tired but
excited. The 14 hour ight made us
very tired. Why were we also excited
after such a long ight? The blue sky,
fresh air and beautiful city made us
forget the tiredness and we all looked
forward to arrive at UNT early.
It is an honor for me to have a three
weeks time to study in UNT campus.
Also I felt very happy to be in the
Advanced class and our teacher is Lisa
Jeon. She is so beautiful and friendly
to us. I love her not only for her
beauty but also for her sweet smile.
She always talks us with smile and
mild tone. There is much fun in her
class with di#erent activities and
games. Such an excellent teacher is
she!
I almost feel happy everyday and
every moment at UNT. In the
daytime we studied in interesting
classes and learned useful knowledge
about di#erent culture in America.
After that we have dinner together
with some Mexico friends.
Except relaxation time, everyday
we have di#erent activities and play
games such as the shopping trip to
Sunset Street,Tour of Downtown
Denton and Ice Cream Social, Texas
Rangers baseball game, Grapevine
Mills Mall shopping trip, Minute to
Win It Night, Sports Night at the
UNT Recreation Center, UNT
Campus Scavenger Hunt,Trip to
downtown Dallas, Sixth Floor
Museum Tour, Karaoke Night, Movie
Night and so on.
Among these activities, I liked the
Bowling & Arcade Night at Main
Event best. It was so exciting for me
to play bowling because I have never
played it before since I was born. The
rst time I played it and was the
winner out of ve people, I felt very
very happy. Then I played some other
small games which were also very
interesting. So the whole night my
lips did not close I guess. I had a lot
of fun. Wonderful night!
HAPPY TIME AT UNT!
Bowling for the rst time!
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS | UNT!INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE SUMMER 2014
PAGE 24
UNT EXPERIENCE
By Shaid Huertas Cortez
Ive had the time of my life. And Ive never felt this
way before. And I swear this is true These are the lyrics
of a song that could describe my wonderful experience at
the University of North Texas. Ive liked every single
minute that I spent here, from my room in Legends Hall
to all the people that Ive met.
First of all the most that I enjoyed was to meet people
of di#erent countries, from USA, China, Hong Kong and
Taiwan. I loved learning about other cultures and make a
lot of friends and also it was good to practice my English.
I learned many vocabulary, grammar and new meanings.
Also I liked my classes. I had three classes a day and I
love them because aside from learning new things, I
played so many fun games. I had excellent teachers and
they were so kind with all the students. But not just that, I
really loved to go to di#erent excursions and doing a lot of
evening activities. The excursion I enjoyed the most was
visiting Texas Rangers Stadium because it was my rst
time in a baseball game. The activity that I liked the most
was Minute to Win It because it was a great competition
and I was in the winner team, so we got an eagle as a prize.
There are many good things at UNT. Its a hard to
describe it, you have to live it. Its the best way to learn
English because you have good teachers and classmates
who help and teach you too. It was like a dream come true
and motivation to keep learning and being a better person,
just like Steve Jobs said Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish.
Thank you, 2014 UNT!International Summer Institute
American Culture & Communication Program participants!
DO YOU HAVE GREAT PHOTOS? SEND THEM TO US!
By Lei Wen $Abby%
During my ACCP experience, the
most cherished thing is the friendship
between Mexicans and our Chinese
Students, and the most unforgettable
event is the Minute to win it night.
I still remember that night, all
the students attended the activity
divided into 4 groups, and my groups
name was Eagle Dragon. There were
so many interesting small
competitions which required us to
nish in one minute. The group
which won the most games was the
winner. Really exciting!
Every time the group members
joined in the game, we yelled for
them, applauded for them, cheered
for them, and encouraged them.
Everyone tried the best to win the
game. After many exciting
competitions we, Eagle Dragon,
nally won the game, and got the
UNT mascot eagle toys for ourselves.
The game was just one of the
aspects reecting the friendship
between us, in our daily life in the
UNT campus. We always take care of
each other.
EAGLE DRAGON, WE WILL WIN!